The programme will consist of the following two
schemes:
- The Economic Resilience Scheme will provide
targeted investment to land managers and their supply
chains. It will provide investment to increase
competitiveness and make improvements in resilience and
productivity for high-quality food production.
- The Public Goods Scheme will provide a new income
stream to land managers delivering public goods from
the land. It will enable them to help address
challenges such as climate change mitigation, habitat
loss, poor air and water quality.
All land managers will have the opportunity to benefit
from the new schemes, not just those currently
receiving CAP. However, people will need to do
things differently in return for this support.
Cabinet Secretary said:
“Welsh land matters. Over 90% of Welsh land is in the
hands of our farmers, foresters or other stewards of
the landscape. How land is managed matters to
us all and our land managers have the potential to
produce outcomes of huge importance to Wales.
“Once we leave the EU, our access to markets and how
we compete will change so maintaining the status quo
is not an option. Exiting the EU means we have
to do things differently and now is the time to
prepare. We need to change how we support our farmers
and agriculture sector to make them sustainable and
able to thrive in a new trading environment. We
have the chance to design a ‘Made in Wales’ system
that works for Welsh farmers and our communities.
"The Programme marks a significant change. That
is why we want to see a phased transition that
balances time needed for change with the need to
provide timely support.
“Our new programme aims to keep farmers farming on
their land and will enable the sector to thrive in a
post-Brexit world.”
No changes will be made to the existing BPS scheme in
2018 and 2019 and all current Glastir contracts will
continue to be honoured. From 2020, work will begin to
move to the new schemes, including a phased reduction
in BPS as new schemes come on-stream. The ambition is
to have the new schemes fully in place by 2025 using
existing high-performing Rural Payments Wales systems.
The proposals will be subject to extensive consultation
until October, working closely with key partners. A
white paper setting out detailed proposals will be
published next spring and we will publish a Bill before
the end of this Assembly session to make provision for
the reform. Funding from old schemes will not be
withdrawn until new schemes are ready.
Currently, the Common Agricultural Policy provides
around £300m a year of support for Welsh land managers.
The Brexit and our Land paper reiterates the importance
that Wales should not lose a penny from leaving the EU
and calls on the UK Government to urgently confirm that
Wales will maintain its current share of funding.
